It is time to rethink the World Cup qualification system U-17 U-17 as Africa presents 10 teams without Nigeria, it is the most successful side

For the first time in the expanded history of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, ten teams in Africa will participate in the global stage, thanks to the new format that welcomes 48 nations to Qatar in November 2025.

Read also: meet the Nigerian goalkeeper who dominates the League one: Arthur Okonkwo maintains a 17 -sheet record

While this development is a great step forward for African football, it has also revived a pressing debate: the structure of the CAF rating system for the U-17 category.

Despite being the most successful nation in the history of the tournament, the five -time Nigerian world champion will not be among Africa representatives this year.

Together with Ghana, another traditional power that has reached multiple finals of the U-17 World Cup, the absence of Nigeria raises questions about the equity and effectiveness of the current qualification structure after CAF could not extend the wild card to Nigeria, which ended the third position in the b wafu qualifiers.

The ten representatives of Africa: Egypt, Uganda, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Mali, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia and Zambia) won their tickets through the Nations Cup of Africa U-17 of CAF U-17 (AFCON) and its play-offs.

Uganda made history by qualifying for his first World Cup after a victory back over the Gambia, while the hosts of Egypt beat Angola in a hard game.

The remaining eight teams had already secured their points by progressing to the qualifying stages of the U-17 AFCon, showing the depth and emerging talent throughout the continent.

However, the regional qualification system that determines the alignment for the U-17 AFCon is increasingly questioned.

Currently, CAF uses a zonal approach, dividing the rating slots between its regional federations.

In particular, the B Wafu zone, which includes both Nigeria and Ghana, receives only two spaces despite being historically the most dominant region of the continent worldwide.

This restriction meant that both countries, despite their pedigree, could not qualify for the tournament and, in turn, the World Cup.

The argument is simple: any qualification system that does not include the best artists historically in Africa, especially with ten available spaces, is defective.

There is a growing call for CAF to increase the slots for stronger areas such as Wafu B (since the battle for the two slots is becoming fierce, while other less competitive regions obtain higher spaces) or abandon the regional qualification system completely in favor of a more open structure based on merit.

Since the last triumph of the Nigerian U-17 World Cup in 2015, no African country has managed to lift the trophy. With the continent now given more opportunities than ever to show its talent on the global stage, it is imperative that CAF guarantees that its best representatives achieve it.

The expanded tournament should be an opportunity for African excellence to shine, not a reminder of how structural limitations can put aside the best in the continent.

As the CAF concludes the qualification for Qatar 2025, CAF must analyze how it selects its representatives, because any selection process that softens its Besr region with the best pedigree in the World Cup is seriously defective since the Western Africa region has always known that it is a power house of cadet football and Wafu B in particular.

Publication views: 2